A Sendara Chronicle: Beginnings of a Stormcloak
by LaceyHeartily
Summary: Sendara's entrance into the Stormcloak army. Rated M for future chapters possibly containing steamy scenes. Writing this story is an experiment. Just try to enjoy the story; don't nit-pick please.


**A Sendara Chronicle:Beginnings of a Stormcloak**

Chapter 1

_This is just a series of possibly related events for Sendara. Right now I'm not sure if I want to write a full series that relates to the actual events in Skyrim. I've been following a few fanfics by girls/women who write their own. I feel kind of inspired to do some myself, but make it more like romance stories along the lines of the Sookie Stackhouse series, where it has a raw reality of blood & violence along with steamy scenes. I guess I'll see how these short stories go. In this story, I'm going to try a different style and see where it leads me._

This was it. Sendara had finally made her way to Windhelm. She walked the main path past houses and shops. The city was active, yet had a sense of gloom due to the weather. She had heard that it snowed here often, and when it didn't snow, it was usually cloudy. Much like today, in fact. She had her hood pulled up on her cloak as she took in the sights. She preferred her hood up as she entered new cities, to help her gauge the overall personality of each city. It was easier to see and not be seen. Having become a capable warrior, by now caution was a second skin. As she made her way towards the Palace of the Kings, she noted a place full of Argonians. She walked along the right side of the place, passing buy a couple larger houses. She had heard of the Jarl segregating the place. According to many who have visited, he sounded intolerant of anyone who wasn't a Nord, though she was sure there were many reasons. Considering the enemy were the Altmeri, for all she knew, the Jarl had enemies in even the least likely areas. Anyone would do anything for gold.

A small, wry smile creeped onto her lips, followed by a nervous sigh. She could see a large fire and two massive, arched metal doors. This told her that she wasn't far away from her destination. As brave as she was, her stomach had annoying butterflies. Not the kind a young girl gets when she meets her crush while courting, but the kind when one is afraid of falling off a tall bridge. Besides the stories she had heard of Ulfric Stormcloak, she'd also heard stories of General Galmar Stone-Fist. Many stories, both real and fiction, were told of his prowess in battle. While she felt herself to be capable enough to take on many in a full battle, since she had taken out several Forsworn camps, she was nervous about what she'd need to do to prove her worth to the Stormcloak cause. She didn't want to simply be a soldier. She hoped to make herself indispensable.

As she walked up the steps near the large fire that burned brightly against the dull gray world, she was stopped by one of the guards. "Please state your business here," the guard said with business-like gruffness. She calmly looked the guard straight in the eyes and replied, "I am here to see General Stone-Fist with intentions of joining the army." After nodding to the other guard, he opened the door, where another guard appeared, conversing with the one she had spoken to. After nodding, they let her enter the palace, though under the stern eyes of the guards. Sendara figured it was because of her obvious Breton appearance. She was actually half Nord, however neither Nords nor Bretons were tolerant of her mixed beginnings.

She crossed the area before the banquet table, walking on the left side of the hall, in order to make her intentions of walking to the war room obvious. She had spoken with a few current Stormcloaks she had met while in Riverwood and Whiterun. They let her know what to expect and how to behave, though couldn't prepare her since she wasn't a full-blooded Nord. They only guessed that her task would be ridiculous.

As she neared the doorway, she cast her eyes quickly over the throne area and saw that the Jarl himself was talking to whom she guessed was his steward, though his eyes cautiously follpwed her as she made her way into the war room.

Upon entering, she was immediately greeted by a deep, gravely voice. "What have we hear?" The large general immediately sized her up, though with her long, deep blue woolen cloak, not much could be seen besides her face and hair. Sendara carefully schooled her face to look unreadable, yet serious. She decided to be frank. "What you have is a capable warrior wanting to join your ranks." She looked him squarely in the eyes, her gaze never faltering. She wanted to come on strong, direct, and refused to be taken lightly as a woman.

Galmar grunted, walking closer to her. He still looked her up and down, unsure of what to make of her, though his expression seemed unimpressed. "I'll be the judge of that, young lass." Sendara kept her face calm and expressionless. She simply said, "I know." He stepped even closer to her. "I'm not easily impressed. Who are you, and why do you wish to join our cause?"

Sendara stood slightly straighter and crossed her arms, allowing her cloak to reveal a peak of what was underneath. She wore ebony that was customized to fit her like a glove. Through much hard work, she had finally come by a full set of ebony armor, which she trimmed with gold along the edges of each plate and added intricate filigree detail work on the surfaces. Her breastplate was enchanted with regeneration capabilities, in case she ran into rough situations. An ebony sword hung at her side, which was enchanted to siphon life out of her victims. She noticed that Galmar's eye fell on the exposed armor, which made his mask fall for a moment, in the form of a raised eyebrow. "I am Sendara. Some refer to me as the Bane of the Forsworn." This made Galmar's face change significantly. "I have heard of you, actually. Your strategy for driving out the Forsworn was quite an interesting tale to hear. Having them end up turning on each other sounded impossible to others, but I am sure I know what methods you used."

He gave a low chuckle that sounded more like a few grunts. "I think I could use someone like you. But what makes you want to join us?" She allowed herself to smile this time. "I know that by looks alone, it seems odd that I would want to join the Stormcloaks. It might even seem ironic, that with my mixed Breton and Nord blood, I have taken out many Forsworn... if you know their true heritage. However, lineage aside, I find the Thalmor to be tyrants, using the Empire as a puppet to control this land. Their outlawing of Talos only makes their grudge against the empire he created blindingly obvious. The Thalmor are simply using revenge as an excuse to take Skyrim. Vengeance only drives people to blind hatred." She shook her head. "It has already turned friends into enemies. The real enemy is the Thalmor, not the Empire. However, the Empire needs to be overthrown if we are all to truly live in peace. The Empire no longer belongs to itself, or two the people. The faster this war ends, the faster we can set this land on a better path."

Galmar stared hard at Sendara. Her answer was very different from what he had expected. He thought she would be this young, arrogant girl with dreams of fame and fortune. Instead, she was passionate about the cause. She understood what the war was about. Most men and women came for a fight. She came to him wanting to get the job done. Instead of acknowledging what she said, he decided to give her a task. He wanted to test her mettle, yet also test her loyalty. He grunted, then turned, walking towards the table to look at the map. "I want you to go Serpentstone Island. There have been reports of an ice wraith there." He turned from the map and walked over to a table, taking a vial from it, and walked over to her. As he handed her the vial, he said, "Don't delay. I expect you back within the week." His face looked hard, but she saw something else in his eyes that she couldn't quite pinpoint. She nodded, her face serious but once again expressionless. She took the vial, quickly glancing at it, and replied, "I understand. I will return sooner than you expect." Both nodded at each other, and she turned on her heel, briskly walking the way she came.

As she put the vial away in her pack, she slightly grinned to herself, then raised her hood while the guard opened the door. The vial was a potion to resist the cold. She smiled to herself as she made her way back down the path and towards the gates. She had already killed quite a few ice wraiths. This mission wasn't to test her strength or abilities as a warrior woman. Galmar simply wanted to see if she could walk her talk. He wanted to know if she was truly dedicated. She would be back in good time.

o0o0o

It was the beginning of her fourth and last day of her travels, and Sendara was riding up to the stables to let her horse get a much needed rest. Her horse, whom the stable hand in Whiterun lovingly called Allie, could be described as a fiery and loyal horse. She did her best not to over work Allie as they rode out on various jobs she'd take from needy villagers. And while Allie may have been only a horse to some people, she knew better. A horse was a good partner, and she treated Allie like one.

After dismounting and handing the reigns to the stable worker, along with a good tip, she lifted her hood and made her way swiftly to the gates and into the city.

o0o

The trip through the city was the same, though this time a homeless woman was near the large fire that both lit and warmed the area before the Palace of the Kings. While some homeless annoyed her, she could tell this one just simply needed some kindness, so she slipped her a gold coin carefully, trying not to draw attention. They caught each other's glance, and the woman nodded in thanks and understanding.

Just before the door, she lowered her hood and nodded at the guard, who happened to be the same one as before. Recognizing her, he opened the door immediately and let her inside.

She walked at a swift pace, wanting to hurry to the general and hurry back out. The only thing she wanted right now is some strong ale, a hot meal and a warm bed. She took a deep breath just before she crossed the threshold of the war room.

Galmar was sitting at the table to her left. He looked up at her with a quick expression of surprise that he quickly wiped off his face. She still noticed however, and gave herself an inner smirk. She could tell that her presence alone had both surprised and impressed him.

After draining his tankard, he set it down carefully on the table. He looked back at her, clearing his throat and setting his face into the same hard, unimpressed expression she had seen before. "So, you made it back, whelp?"

At the condescending word, she hid a smirk, using a bemused expression of her own. "Yes, General Stone-Fist." She fished into a pouch at her hip for a vial. "As proof, here is a vial of Ice Wraith essence." He took the vial, which was cool in his hand. "I see. Good work." His answers were short, but she could tell he was pretty shocked. He set the vial on the table, then stood up. He walked to stand just inches from her. Looking her seriously in the face, he said, "I should be honest with you. I wasn't expecting you to make it back. You've proven yourself more than worthy to join our cause."

She bit her tongue on her molar while looking off to the side. What was he playing at? "So, you're saying you sent me off on some ridiculous mission, hoping to do away with me?" She looked up at him, her eyes searing into his. "I'm going to set something straight here and now. You're the general, and I respect that. But I came here to join a cause that I believe in. I'm not worried about Nords against Imperials, or the other way around. Unlike most of the rabble that comes around, I know what this is all about. I've read history. The high elves are like scorned women wanting revenge against Talos, so they burn his temples and ban his worship everywhere they go."

She took a breath, then continued. "Now, I'm only a half Nord. I've had to fight all my life because Nords wouldn't accept me, and Bretons didn't know what to do with a girl who didn't care much for magic. But I know who I am and what I'm good at. With a weapon in either hand, I'm unstoppable. I have a long list of skills that would surprise any seasoned veteran. I may look young, but I've live a long, hard life. I don't have time for silly games. There's a war that I want to help end. I've seen enough senseless bloodshed just on my way here. Not to mention plenty of bandits are having a field day through all the confusion."

She took another breath to calm herself down, and relaxed slightly. "So why don't you send me on a real mission and let us get things going?"

Much to her surprise, instead of biting her head off and spitting the remains out, Galmar simply laughed. At first it was just a few chuckles, but then he started giving a real belly laugh. Her face looked incredulous, and she felt as if she was about to go completely insane.

Before she could say anything more, he held up his hand to stop her. "Listen lass, I have to test everyone who comes through that door. The serious ones do that ridiculous mission with honor. We have had too many spies try to worm their way into our ranks. Sometimes they're convincing. But this is the moment of truth." He smiled as he continued. "You, my dear, are one of the rarest finds. A true diamond among the rough initiates. I haven't seen a fire like that since... since I first joined."

He shook his head and motioned for him to join her. "Let's find you a uniform." She silently followed him through the door. After walking up a few short flights of stairs, they entered a large armory. He went to a trunk and sifted through it until he found a cuirass that looked about her size. "Here, try this on." She raised an eyebrow, but took off her thick cloak, revealing her impressive armor for the first time. His eyes grew wide as he saw the immense detail that went all through her armor. He couldn't help but admire the way the armor looked tailored to her form.

As she reached to undo the straps underneath her breastplate to slide it off, Galmar commented on it. "I didn't want to say anything out there, but I noticed your armor. Where did you come across a set like this?" She gave a small smirk as she slid off the breastplate easily, revealing the skin tight leather, fur-lined tunic she wore to keep her armor from chafing. As he stared at her shapely figure, she said, "I made it myself after melting down the ebony armor I found. Like I said, I have many skills."

Galmar nodded, realizing she was truthful when she said she had a surprising skill set. He gestured to her leather. "This is the first fine undergarment I've seen worn for armor." At this, Sendara smiled. "This is meant to function as a warm set of maneuverable clothes for colder regions, not just something to line my armor. Whatever I use needs to have many functions."

Sendara slid on the cuirass as she talked, the leather she wore not hindering any movement, in spite of looking so tight. The cuirass only had chainmail that covered the shoulders, something she found odd considering the colder weather. Perhaps the Nords were so accustomed to their colder climate, that it had very little effect. The stories she had heard must be true.

"This seems to fit well," Sendara said, as she glanced at Galmar. He blinked quickly, looking at the cuirass this time instead of her figure. Sendara's quick eyes easily noticed his small tell. She began to wonder if there were many women who joined the cause. Taking off the cuirass, she laid it on top of the trunk he'd found it in.

She looked up at the General as she strapped on her breastplate once again. "Is there anything else you feel I'll need, in terms of uniform?" He cleared his throat before he spoke. " The one thing we require is the cuirass to show your position with the Stormcloak army. It is preferable that you wear this in place of a breastplate, but most wear thick leathers to cover their legs. There are no uniformed boots." He grinned as he paused for a moment. "Something tells me you will find a way to make this cuirass just as efficient as the armor you currently have on." She gave a small grin as she replied. "That is true. I refuse to have myself vulnerable in battle. The cuirasses may work well for a beginner, though with my experience, I will need more."

The General stood up and motioned for her to follow, the two making their way back to the war room. She had just finished putting on her cloak as they entered. Ensuring her cloak covered her armor completely, she stood beside him as he stopped and leaned over the map. "It's time for you to have a real mission. How are you with going under cover?"

Sendara's face spread into her usual smirk.

o0o


End file.
